Defiant nuns flee care home for their abandoned convent in the Alps

[IwantToRetire]

Three Austrian nuns in their 80s have run away from the retirement home where they were placed and gone back to their former convent.

Sister Bernadette, 88, Sister Regina, 86, and Sister Rita, 82, are the last three nuns at the Kloster Goldenstein convent in Elsbethen, just outside Salzburg.

They regained access with the help of former students and a locksmith.

Church authorities are not happy - but the nuns are.

"I am so pleased to be home," Sister Rita said. "I was always homesick at the care home. I am so happy and thankful to be back."

The trio say they were taken out of the convent against their will in December 2023.

continues at https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c5y8r2gk0vyo

The Nun's Liberation Movement !!

OH it's a movie, but how to cast the three nuns. Julie Andrews, would be a good start

Sisters are doin’ it for themselves! 🎼🎶🎵

There have to be some rewards for a life of chastity 😝

This is a lovely light thread and you’re casting a sour note. Shame!

I love this so much. Never underestimate a nun.

Judi Dench, Eileen Atkins and Celia Imrie.

Sorry ... but my grandfather was brought up in a catholic children's home .... need I say more. Sour about sums up how I feel about this institution

I immediately thought of “when I am old I shall wear purple”!

This reminds me of Green Glove Gang on Netflix, except that the three old female burglars (old is relative, they are not decrepti) move into a care home instead of out of it.

Just added that to my list. Thanks 👍

Ooh good cast

And that's my Netflix binge for tomorrow sorted, I was wondering what to watch next as I'm currently on the last episode of 1883 (having accidentally watched 1923 first... Actually I watched Yellowstone first, so I'm working my way backwards through time in that story arc)

Actually I might sub out Judi Dench for Stephanie Cole who played Diana in Waiting for God, she was a battleaxe.

I loved 1883, though I haven't watched any of the others, and looking at the reviews that's maybe the best one.

Maybe you'd like The English (Prime). The cinematography is absolutely outstanding.

It is the best news story in ages. The newsreader also had a huge smile. Go nuns. They looked so happy escaping

Dont want to sound too grumpy, but I actually bothered to paste in the quote about how their bank accounts have been frozen, and no one seems to think this is a complete breach of their autonomy.

So all these whatabout how are they going to pay for stuff is irrelevant.

What is relevant is on what authority is their money being witheld.

Unless of course the church just seems them as immature children and is stopping their pocket money for being naughty.

Seems like an infringement of their human rights.

I hope the UN takes it up.

Not that they are much use.

They look weird - most nuns haven't worn those old-style habits for decades, these days they tend to wear sensible skirts and cardis, and no veil.
Maybe these ones have broken out the old habits to look more photogenic...

It's interest to read posters saying they'd like to join them in their convent - becoming a nun was the only way out of compulsory marriage and annual childbirths for girls in Ireland in the past, and also the only way to get teacher training or a university education, which most families couldn't afford.

Obviously there were pretty serious downsides - chastity probably wasn't the worst of them for some nuns, given the alternatives on offer - but it was a choice which gave women a degree of protection, independence from men on a day-to-day basis, educational opportunities and a job.

In the fields of education and nursing, a lot of them did a good job. Obviously nuns are a mixed bunch, and there are negative stories, but many of us convent girls can remember teaching nuns who encouraged and inspired us.

As a previous poster said: underestimate nuns at your peril!

It's interesting that religious orders putting old nuns in retirement homes is unpopular here in Ireland for a different reason - the feeling is that the orders should be paying reparation to the residents of institutions instead of providing comfy homes for old nuns...

You’re right @IwantToRetire- that really does sound bad. Unless under their legal system there’s some sort of power of attorney sort of thing, but it doesn’t sound like they’re all mentally incapable or anything like that.

OMG amazing!

If they don’t re-write sister act 3, currently in production, to be based on this, I’ll be fuming!

I had never seen that come up a a suggestion, so have agreed that to my Prime watch list.

Thank you.

1923 isn't as good as 1883 but very watchable.

Towanda sisters.

These women have all been indoctrinated and are trauma bonded in my view. Attending the school as a child, staying on and becoming a teacher as a nun rings all sorts of alarm bells.
Moving these women out of the only home they have known when they are in their 80s is nothing short of inhumane.
Best interest assessments anyone??

Let us not judge them about their actions in years gone by unless we have some evidence or at least an account.

As nuns who've taken a vow of poverty, do they actually have personal bank accounts or is it the convent account (which presumably belongs to the church)? If they do have personal accounts I don't suppose there's very much in them. Certainly not enough to maintain and run a building of that size. Would they get pensions?

I miss having our sisters around - they were amazing, albeit one drove like the devil himself was within striking range. But they're getting older and after a lifetime of work (and fighting the diocese), they actually wanted to finally withdraw into their convent and have some peace.

I must admit I did wonder, but dont know the specific rules of the convent before it was closed.

I can remember reading when I was younger about Convents run more like co-operatives, usually more rural ones where they grew vegetables for sale etc..

But presumably whatever money there was went in a central account.

I got the impressions from some of the many news stories that yes it was a sort of pension as they had lost their home and support network with the Convent closing.

So maybe they only got the money if they were good girls and obeyed the rules and lived in the care home chosen for them.

I am sure if they set up a gofundme they would get a useful amount of money!

Cant find their instagram account where I thought there might more info.

My aunt was a nun, just across the border in Munich, Arme Schulschwestern not Augustiner like these three. She would be a few years older than Sister Bernadette if she wouldn't have died at age 51. She had no bank account and I'm not sure if she would have qualified for a pension despite having worked as the secretary to the head mistress (also a nun, first woman to gain a doctorate in pedagogy in Bavaria) at the school they run in Munich, until her death. Her share of her inheritance from my maternal grandparents went to the order. She certainly had some money for buying a few personal things and I and my siblings and cousins always got a small birthday present every year but there were certainly no savings. I assume if she had lived to old age the order would have taken responsibility for her care and this is the deal when someone joins the order.